BEIJING – A Chinese lawyer human rights lawyer has been detained amid a clampdown on lawyers, journalists and scholars ahead of the June 4 anniversary of the 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protests.

Tang Jingling's wife said police took him away Friday from their home in the southern city of Guangzhou and said he was suspected of picking quarrels and provoking trouble. Tang has represented clients complaining of corruption, land seizures and other grievances.

A man who answered the phone at the district police office that issued the detention notice said he knew nothing about the case. He refused to give his name.

Tang's wife, Wang Yanfang, said state security officers warned him earlier against doing anything to commemorate the 1989 crackdown on protests centered on Tiananmen Square in Beijing.